Stormy Hearts
by stephfarrow94
Summary: After the Ring Battle, Bel finds himself lusting after Gokudera, obsessed with the pain the Vongola Storm Guardian had inflicted on him. Gokudera, despite Bel's persistence, wants nothing to do with the youngest Varia member. 59B Gokudera X Bel yaoi
1. Chapter 1

Once the battle for the Storm Ring had ended and the Varia's Storm Guardian had been declared the winner, Squalo had been the one designated to retrieve the boy whom they were all sure of would be in one of his psychotic moods again from having been so badly injured.

As the Rain Guardian stepped through the wreckage of the school towards the wing he knew Belphegor was in, the smell of blood and smoke became stronger with each step he took. He knew the boy wouldn't be dead – even if he _was _most likely badly injured; Belphegor was far too stubborn to let himself lose, much less die in such a fight.

_He better not go all crazy on me again when I find him or I'll put him down myself, _Squalo thought as he stepped into the room the last of the fight had taken place in; the library. He could hear Belphegor's maniacal laughter from somewhere towards the back of the room, so he changed course and made his way towards the bloodied and burnt body that kept twitching with laughter.

"What are you doing, Bel?" Squalo asked as he stood above the boy, his dark eyes looking disapprovingly at the boy.

"Winner… Shishishi~ I win…!" Bel just kept laughing and muttering about his victory, leaving Squalo to lean down and pick him up; it was clear the kid was in one of _those _moods – one where he was so lost in his psychotic mind, nothing from his external environment really registered in his mind.

"You're a shithead, Bel," the older male muttered, able to tell just from looking at his teammate that the younger had several broken bones all over his body. "Why can't you just get up and walk?"

"Ushishishi~ Royal blood…" Bel continuously giggled to himself, probably unaware of the fact that there was someone close to him, much less carrying him. "Royal blood; it's so good…!"

"Shut it," Squalo muttered to himself, adjusting Bel so that the boy's front rested against his chest, the blond head of hair supported by his shoulder. "The things I do for you…"

Bel, so clearly lost in his own little world, probably had no acknowledge of the fact that, as he kept reflecting on his fight against the Vongola Storm Guardian, the front of his pants became tighter and tighter than they already were, and soon he was pressing hard against Squalo.

The older male, who was very uncomfortable with how this was turning out, cleared his throat, but it still didn't draw Belphegor back into reality. Even shouting his trademark "Voi!" didn't work.

Unable to keep shifting Bel around in case he caused further damage to the boy's body, he had no choice but to put up with the quiet groans and soft pants that accompanied Bel's grinding against his body.

_Disgusting little shit, _Squalo snarled in his head as he quickened his pace, wanting to be rid of the nuisance as soon as possible. _I'm going to fucking kill him…!_

Bel was still going by the time he was brought back to the rest of the Varia group, and Squalo could only duck his head in shame.

"Anyone want him?" Squalo asked, willing to hand the kid off to the first bidder.

"Fuck no," Xanxus growled, eyeing Bel with distaste. "You can keep _that _to yourself."

Squalo opened his mouth to argue but was quickly cut off when a loud moan from the boy in his arms signalled the younger's release.

Xanxus snorted in amusement while Mammon and Leviathan remained quiet, not knowing what to say.

"Voi!" Squalo roared, jerking Bel away from him as if he carried plague. He didn't care anymore about injuring the kid – this was too much for him. "Someone take the bastard before I kill him!"

If Bel had any awareness of what he had just done, he didn't now; his eyes had slipped closed and he was fast asleep, his dreams reliving the fight he had just been in.


	2. Chapter 2

"You're a freaky little shit. Do you know that?" Squalo was leaning against the door frame to Bel's bedroom, his arms crossed against his chest. "Getting off to pain like that..."

"Ushishishi~" Bel lay in his bed, his leg in a cast while bandages covered his entire body, leaving only his mouth visible. Having been caught in so many explosions had burnt and broken his body, but the blond had loved the pain, wanting more of it. "But it feels so _good, _Squ-Squ~ It's so good, it makes me horny. See?"

Squalo's face paled as the boy pulled back the blanket he was under, revealing a large bulge in Bel's pants. Unfolding his arms, the man turned to leave, feeling as if he were about to throw up. "You're a creep..."

"Squ-Squ, the prince is going to touch himself now. Ushishishi~" As if to emphasise his point, the blond slipped a hand into his lap, his long fingers caressing the bulge. "Make sure no one interrupts~"

Squalo raised a hand to his mouth, shouting over his shoulder as he retreated, "You sick little fuck!"

"Ushishishi~" Bel slipped his bandaged hand beneath the waistband of his pants, grasping his hardened self roughly. He let out a moan, not caring that Squalo hadn't closed his bedroom door, stroking himself.

"Ungh...!" Images of the fight between he and Gokudera ran rampart through Bel's mind, the pain he had been dealt crystal clear in his mind. "Mmm... G-goku...dera..."

The boy's hand moved quicker along his shaft, his fingers squeezing tightly. He giggled as he remembered what it felt like to be caught in those explosions, the pain of broken limbs sending twitches down his length.

"A-ah..." Bel curled in on himself as his hand pumped faster and faster, feeling the coil in his stomach about to snap. With one last squeeze, he cried out as he felt his climax hitting him, spurting out all over his chest and bed sheets.

Wiping away the sweat that had accumulated on his forehead, Bel laughed to himself. He threw himself backwards, resting against the pillows, his laughter dying down into giggles.

_Gokudera... _"Ushishishi~" _Gokudera, you will be _mine.

**~~That night~~**

Bel waited until the Varia were all asleep, knowing that if they heard him walking about the corridors after his curfew, they would merely assume he was going to the bathroom or needed a drink - why else would he sneak about when there was no one to annoy?

It was well past midnight before the last member went to sleep, leaving Bel to his own devices. He grabbed the crutches that were leaning against his bedside drawers, using them to get to his wardrobe. He was quiet as he pulled out his usual striped shirt along with the Varia uniform, putting them on instead of the pale blue, crown-print pyjamas he was wearing.

Once he had dressed himself - with much difficulty due to his injuries - he slipped on his white lace boots next. The stash of credit cards he kept stored in his drawer were next to be collected, slipped into a zip pocket on the inside of his black Varia jacket.

And, of course, once his crown - which was really a tiara - was carefully nestled in his blond locks, Bel knew he was ready to leave. He left his phone sitting on his bed, not caring to bring it with him - the only use he had for it was for calling the taxi that should almost be at the Varia mansion by now.

Sneaking through the corridors was trickier than usual due to his new addition of crutches, but no one woke - or if they did, they didn't come out of their room to question him.

_This is going to be so much fun~ _Bel had to stifle his laughter as he got off the stairs, walking towards the front door. _The prince is going to go to Japan~ He's going to have so much fun~ _

Bel let his laughter ring freely through the night air as he limped through the gardens of the Varia, heading towards the huge steel gate that kept trespassers out.

_Oh, all the pain awaiting the prince~ _Bel waited only for a few seconds before the taxi pulled up in front of him. _Such fun~_

"To the airport~" Bel couldn't hide the excitement from his voice as he instructed the driver to take him across the town. "Ushishishi~"

The driver, unnerved by the fact that his passenger was a member of the _Varia, _kept silent for the drive, leaving Bel's thoughts to go wild. Once he had dropped the teenager off and gotten his fare, headed straight back home, unable to believe that he was still alive.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Sorry about not having updated anything within the past week; my cat was bitten by a snake and I had been too distraught to write. We brought her home from the vet yesterday, but she can still go downhill in the coming weeks, so if I abruptly stop updating again, that's probably what has happened and apologies in advance.**

Bel was excited as he stepped out of Namimori Airport, knowing he was much closer to getting what he wanted. The cold night air blew past him, ruffling his blond strands.

"The prince is so excited~" Bel rambled, unconsciously speaking in Japanese rather than Italian. "The prince is going to get fucked soon~"

Bel was oblivious to the people who stopped and turned to stare at him, shocked by his words. He instead grinned widely as he focused on finding the location of Gokudera's home, and he knew he could do so by checking school records. The blond made his way towards the school where the Ring Battles had been held, fully intending on breaking in and hacking their system.

~~Gokudera's apartment~~

Gokudera wasn't entirely sure of why he woke so suddenly throughout the night. He yawned as he opened his eyes, glancing at the alarm clock he was already facing. He frowned as he noticed the time flashed three-twenty-three, wondering if something had happened to the Tenth.

The silver-haired male frowned at this thought and, just as he decided he would reach for his phone on the nightstand next to him, the sound of heavy breathing behind him made him freeze - had someone broken into his apartment? ...Were they... watching him _sleep?! _

Spinning around to see who was behind him, Gokudera was so surprised by those familiar blond bangs he almost fell out of his bed.

"What the -"

Belphegor, who had been standing by the bed - leaning heavily on crutches - and watching the younger male sleep for the past ten minutes, laughed before he crawled onto the bed himself, looking down at the teenager sprawled out on the ground. "Ushishishi~ Peasants can be so rude; you should be happy to see the prince~"

"Not when you're in my room and watching me sleep like a creeper!" Gokudera growled, wishing he had at least one bomb within grabbing distance - their fight had taught him that this boy was a lunatic, and nothing could be put past him. "Why are you even here?! Didn't you all go back to Italy?!"

"We did, yes." Bel's grin widened as he surveyed the younger male, waiting for him to speak again.

"So why are you _here?_" Gokudera stood up, brushing off his pyjama pants.

"Because the prince is horny as fuck and he wants you to fuck him~" A lopsided grin made its way to Bel's face, almost as if he believed these were the magic words to make his wishes come true.

Gokudera scowled at the blond, his nose scrunched in distaste. "You freak. Why the hell would you fly back to Japan just for _that?_"

"Because the prince is horny as fuck and he wants you to fuck him~" Bel repeated again as if the other hadn't heard him properly. "Fuck the prince? Nice and hard. The prince wants it rough."

"Disgusting!" Gokudera reached out and grabbed the older teenager by the back of his Varia jacket, dragging him and his crutches off the bed and out of the room. "Not in your lifetime!"

"But the prince is really horny~" Bel bucked his hips as if to emphasise his point. He didn't resist as he was dragged along the ground through Gokudera's apartment, instead finding it amusing; he always had loved the thrill of the chase. "The peasant can fuck the prince however hard and fast he wants. Promise~"

Gokudera opened the door to his apartment, finding that the lock had been broken somehow - was this how Bel had gotten into his apartment? But how had he done it so quietly when it looked as if both the doorknob and the lock built into it had been torn off?

"Out you go!" Gokudera huffed as he used all his strength to throw the older teenager out of his apartment and into the cold corridor outside, making sure at least _one _of his crutches hit him in the head. "And _stay _out!"

Bel laughed as the door was slammed in his face; he knew where Gokudera lived, and that was all he needed - he'd get the younger to have sex with him sooner or later.

Inside the apartment, Gokudera pushed his couch up against the door, stopping it from being pushed open without him hearing it.

Making his way back into the bedroom, Gokudera grabbed his phone from the nightstand, clicking open his contacts. He knew it was way too early to be ringing someone, but he had to make sure Belphegor hadn't gotten to _his _Tenth first and tortured the brunet into telling Bel where he lived.

The teenager's phone-call was answered soon enough, a very sleepy voice greeting him. "Hello...?"

"Tenth!" Gokudera couldn't keep the worry out of his voice, but it didn't seem as if any torture had happened... Perhaps it had been that baseball nut Bel had gotten to? "Tenth, that Storm Guardian of the Varia... He was standing here watching me sleep."

"...Wha...?" In Tsuna's half-asleep state, he was almost uncertain of who or what his friend was talking about.

"Belphegor, that freak from the Varia." Gokudera glanced at his door as if he were paranoid the older teenger had gotten back in somehow. "I think he may have tortured the baseball freak into telling him where I live."

"...Then maybe you should ring Yamamoto and make sure that's not the case... Goodnight..."

"Night..."

Gokudera ended the call, slipping his phone beneath his pillow; he would call Yamamoto tomorrow and let him have it if _he _were the reason Bel found out where he lived. He was almost too paranoid to go back to sleep, certain the Storm Guardian would get back in somehow.

~~Outside Gokudera's apartment~~

At five-fifteen in the morning, one of Gokudera's neighbours found it strange to be stepping over a blond boy curled up in front of Gokudera's door on their way to work. The man found it even stranger to be running when an oddly-shaped knife was thrown at him - just what kind of friends did Gokudera _have? _

When Bel was certain his sleep wouldn't be disturbed again, he curled back up into a ball, quite comfortable where he was; if Gokudera didn't want him in the apartment, that was fine - he would just wait outside until he could pester the younger into giving in to his advances - the chase was the best part, after all.


	4. Chapter 4

When it came to Gokudera, Sawada Tsunayoshi had quickly learnt not to be surprised - but when the silver-haired teenager caught up with him just out the front of their school, a familiar blond following him around, Tsuna was shocked.

"B-bel-san...?" Tsuna stuttered, the memories of the Storm Ring battle clear in his head - Belphegor was vicious, and would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. "W-what are you d-doing here...?"

Bel's grin was impossibly wide as he leant heavily against one of his crutches, shrugging. "The prince is trying to get Hayato-kun to fuck him~"

"..." Tsuna was frozen in shock, his mouth agape as his soft brunet eyes stared in horror at the Varia Storm. Bel just giggled, as if all of this was a game to him.

"Yo, Tsuna!"

The three teenagers turned around as they heard the youngest of the trio, Yamamoto Takeshi, greeting them. The dark-haired boy looked at cheerful as ever as he stopped by the others, his eyes shining as usual.

"What's Bel doing here?" Yamamoto just smiled at the blond as if this wasn't the same boy who had almost killed Gokudera over a ring.

"The prince wants to be fucked~" Bel poked Gokudera as he spoked. "He wants Hayato-kun to fuck him until he bleeds."

Yamamoto just laughed good-naturedly. Both Tsuna and Gokudera wondered if the younger even knew what Bel was talking about.

"What's 'fucking'?" Yamamoto's grin never wavered in the least.

"Well, when Hayato-kun finally fucks the prince, the peasant can watch and learn~" Bel licked his lips at the thought. "The prince likes it when people watch him; it makes him even hornier~"

For once, Gokudera found himself looking out for Yamamoto - slapping his hands over the younger's ears, he hissed at Bel, "Shut the fuck up! You're tainting his innocence!"

"Well, the prince would like to keep Hayato-kun for himself, but he doesn't mind if someone else joins in~"

"Fuck, you're pissing me off with that stupid third-person speech!" Gokudera reached into the pocket of his school jacket, his hand resurfacing with a few small bombs. "See these? Keep it up and I'll shove these so far up your ass, you'll be spitting up gunpowder for the next year."

"That's not all Hayato-kun can shove up there." Bel's smile was so innocent, Tsuna couldn't help but laugh softly.

"You did walk into that one, Gokudera-kun," the brunet said softly.

Gokudera growled, stuffing the dynamite back in his pocket; he would never hurt his beloved Tenth, but Belphegor was _really _getting on his nerves.

"So what, are you just going to follow us into school, dumbass?" Gokudera asked the older teenager. Bel just giggled as he nodded. "You know they'll kick you straight back out, right?"

As the silver-haired male said this, the bell rang overhead, signalling the beginning of classes.

Gokudera just took one last look at the blond before he grabbed Tsuna and Yamamoto's jackets, pulling them through the grounds of the school and towards the building awaiting them.

Bel followed behind at a distance, almost like a lion stalking its prey. He didn't mind losing sight of the three younger males amongst the horde of school students because hunting them down was all part of the fun.

_The prince is happy~ Happy, happy, happy~ _The Varia Storm hummed to himself as he stopped outside of the classroom he knew his target had entered. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his visible excitement and pull off something in order to stay with the angsty teenager.

Bel wiped the grin off his face, pretending this was another mission given to him by Xanxus. He knocked politely on the wooden door before sliding it open, bowing to the teacher as he knew was the Japanese custom. He smiled in a polite manner before he raised his body and pointed to Gokudera.

"Hayato-kun is my boyfriend. I'm new to this school, and he said he would show me around before I officially start." Inside, Bel was quivering with excitement.

The male teacher blinked at Bel, his mouth agape. It opened and closed for a few seconds before he managed to say, "E-exuse me...?"

Bel walked through the rows of desks until he was standing by a now-fuming Gokudera's side. He grinned as he reached out to pet silver hair before he replied. "I lose my bearings easily, so I need someone to show me around for a few days so I'm not late to class when I start. Hayato-kun promised he'd take care of me while we were fucking - I assume that goes for showing me around school, too."

Gokudera wanted to reach out and snap that scrawny little brat's neck, but he knew if he did anything right now, Bel would throw another fit - it was either put up with being treated as if he _were _gay and dating that blond freak, or have questions he just didn't want to answer arise.

It was torture stopping his shaking hands from throwing dynamite at the Varia member, and even holding back his tongue, but nothing compared to when Bel got up the nerve to lean down and still his first kiss from him. He was sure that, if he hadn't been stunned so badly, the school janitors would have been moping the older teenager up from the floor. Instead, he could only sit there with wide eyes, barely taking in the shocked looks of his teacher and classmates.

It was Yamamoto who brought everyone back to reality. The dark-haired teenager laughed before saying, "I didn't know you and Bel were dating."

"Oh, we are~" Bel sang, knowing he had just shocked the teacher far too much to be able to so much as ask him to leave. Taking a seat on Gokudera's lap, he said, "We've been going steady for a while now."

Gokudera was far too stunned to push the other off him. He could only blink and feel the way his hands were grabbed and wrapped around a skinny waist.

"What are you doing...?" Even Gokudera's _voice _was full of shock, weak and confused.

"Joining Hayato-kun in class, of course~" Bel giggled to himself as he leant back against the younger's chest, feeling at ease with the way things were. "The prince won't leave until Hayato-kun fucks him~"

"Slut." Gokudera muttered, pulling his hands away from the other. "You're lucky I don't want to start any questions involving the Tenth being involved with mafia or I'd have blown you to hell already."

"Well, when Hayato-kun _does _blow him, can he cum all over your pretty face?"

Gokudera just slapped his face, hating the way he kept opening himself up for comments like this. He really did need to learn to shut up...


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N The plot has started moving forward in this chapter. See if you can guess how; it's a bit subtle.**

Just when Gokudera was sure he couldn't take anymore of Belphegor following him around like a shadow, pestering him for sex, the one and only place he had even a _chance _of escaping to was now gone, the blond having gone and enrolled himself into all of Gokudera's classes - Bel had done more with the computer system than just look up Gokudera's address; he had gone and created an entirely new profile just for him to appear on school records and - more importantly - the rosters of his target's classes.

The silver-haired teenager had found this out the hard way when his stalker had strolled into class, clad in the school uniform - Hibari, however, would have a field day with the Varia Storm if he caught the older teenager still wearing his purple striped shirt beneath said uniform.

"The hell are you doing?" Gokudera hissed as the older male took the unoccupied desk next to him. "Can't you just fuck off and leave me alone already?"

"Not until the prince gets a fuck~" That grin Gokudera had come to hate never left his face.

_God, he's persistent... _"Is there anything else ever on your mind apart from sex?" Gokudera almost snarled these words out.

"Of course there is." Belphegor shrugged. "There's always killing people on my mind, too. Sometimes I like to imagine what it would be like to drag my knives through your body until every inch of you is covered in red~"

"You creep." Gokudera shuddered and turned away, choosing to instead stare out of the window.

The younger teenager managed to ignore his stalker for the entirety of the class - even the childish balls of paper that were thrown at him with no doubt a dumb note written inside - and as soon as the bell rang, he was out the door like a bullet, just wanting to get away from the blond.

The trio met up on the roof to have their lunch within just a few minutes and, to Gokudera's relief, Belphegor wasn't anywhere in sight.

"When did Bel-san join the class?" Tsuna asked, digging the straw into his juice box.

"The little fucker apparently hacked the school system when he was looking for my address." Gokudera rolled his eyes. "He's a creep."

"I like him," Yamamoto inputted, his usual smile still plastered on his face. "He's really not that bad now that the ring part of the Mafia Game is over."

"'Not that bad'?" Gokudera grabbed Yamamoto by the front of his shirt, pulling him closer. "_You _try and put up with him breaking into your house in the middle of the night to stand over your bed and watch you sleep while breathing heavily! And then when _you _wake up to kick him back outside, _you'd _better watch out for that fucking crutch because he won't hesitate to whack you in the face with it!"

Yamamoto just laughed before he raised his hands in defence, a lopsided grin crossing his face. "Now, now, Gokudera, no need for violence."

"Ushishishi~ Yes, Hayato-kun, no need for violence."

Gokudera covered his face with his hands, sighing as he realised the same pest that had been bothering him for the past week and a half was making itself known once again. Belphegor had just walked out onto the roof, void of his crutches.

"Not seeking peoples' sympathy today?" Gokudera mocked, his green eyes narrowed at the other. "Did you even need them in the first place?"

"At first~" Bel sang. "Then it was just fun hitting and tripping you with them, so the prince let them tag along on his adventures."

"I've had it with you!" Like a cat, Gokudera sprung to his feet, knocking Bel to the ground. He wrapped his arms around the older teenager's neck, shaking him back and forth before he freed one hand and used it to punch the blond in the face.

Tsuna gasped, but he was honestly too afraid to get involved - the Varia were scary, and he didn't want to get on their bad sides. It was Yamamoto who pulled the silver-haired teenager away, hugging the smaller teen tightly to him as he looked down at Bel.

The blond's nose was bleeding and his lip had been split, but he was laughing it off, licking at the crimson blood that dripped down his face. He lifted his head as if he was looking at Gokudera, and he made a show of licking the blood from his mouth slowly before grinning.

"Hayato-kun, you made the prince hard again~" Bel reached down, resting his hand against his crotch. "Want to fix it, or should the prince take care of it himself?"

Gokudera snarled before he broke free of Yamamoto's grip. He pointed down at Belphegor, absolutely livid. "You... You fucking _creep! _Get the hell out of my life!"

Belphegor

Laughed as he watched Gokudera leave the roof. He turned to observe the two friends the silver-haired male had left behind, seeing Tsuna quickly gathering up what they had left behind as if he meant to chase after the other teen.

"Gokudera-kun!" Tsuna moved to Yamamoto's side, trying to nudge him along with his elbow as his arms were full. "Yamamoto, we should go after him."

"Bel might need some help, Tsuna." Though the brunet loved his friend for how sweet Yamamoto was, now was _not _the time to be sticking around lest _both _of their innocence be tainted.

"Not _now_, Yamamoto," Tsuna mumbled. "Go."

Yamamoto rubbed the back of his head before he apologised to the blond. "Sorry, Bel; I want to help, but -" the boy couldn't continue on; his friend had succeeded in pushing him along. Calling over his shoulder, Yamamoto gave his farewell. "Bye, Bel! Play again, soon!"

Tsuna shuddered as they reached the door leading back down into the building, hearing a moan wafting along through the air. He didn't look back, and when he saw Yamamoto did, he could only hope the younger's pureness was still in tact.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N There is implied self-harm in this chapter, but nothing graphic. It's also not from angst or anything of the like and never ****_will _****be graphic. You'll understand why it's been put in here within a few more chapters. **

When Bel approached Gokudera and his friends at school two days later, the younger male was surprised to find bruises covering one half of the blond's face, disappearing behind the long bangs. His first assumption was that someone had hit him - but Prince the Ripper wasn't the kind of person to allow himself to be assaulted to easily.

"What did you do to your face?" Tsuna asked, frowning. "It looks painful."

Belphegor just laughed before he replied. "The prince wanted to feel more pain from Hayato-kun, but Hayato-kun wasn't around - so the prince started a fight and let them hit him until he was ready to kill them."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Gokudera hissed, horrified to hear that someone was so desperate for pain inflicted by _his _hands, they'd willingly go out and risk their lives for it. He reached out, grabbing the blond's wrist so that he could pull Bel closer, but he quickly backed off as the other hissed in pain before laughing. "...What else have you done?"

Bel's smile never faltered as he lifted his right sleeve up, revealing skinny arms stained with blood, deep cuts everywhere - they went across the boy's wrist, down the top of his arm, and all of them - enough to leave very little skin unmarred - criss-crossed, making it hard to tell what direction they had originally started in.

"The prince doesn't have any bombs, so he started cutting himself and pretended it was Hayato-kun." Bel sounded as happy as ever, as if he had gotten off on doing this to himself.

Tsuna looked horrified as he took in the sight before him. Yamamoto just tilted his head, not knowing what to think - he wasn't stupid enough to not know what these cuts would mean in a lot of other people, but he had never heard of someone cutting themselves for physical pleasure.

It was Gokudera who spoke - or shouted, to be more correct. He shoved Bel into the lockers behind them, grabbing the wounded arm and sliding the sleeve back down, hiding the evidence. "Are you fucking _stupid?! _You could have _killed _yourself!"

"No, Hayato-kun." The blond giggled as he pressed against the warm body before him. "The prince was careful - he loves his life and doesn't want to die."

The silver-haired teenager pushed his stalker away, ignoring the crowds that had stopped to look at them with his outburst. "I never thought you'd be stupid enough to do that to yourself! What if you slipped?! What if it went too deep?!"

"Aww, is Hayato-kun worried?" Bel laughed, reaching out to pat the younger male's cheek. "No, Hayato-kun should know that the prince has killed enough people to know what's safe and what's not. The prince isn't suicidal; he just likes pain."

"What the hell would Xanxus or Squalo say about that?" Gokudera sneered. "Bet they'd stop that the second they knew about it - it's not _safe, _Bel!"

"Hayato-kun is such a caring boyfriend~" Without warning, Bel pushed forward, pressing his lips to Gokudera's. He took advantage of the slightly smaller male's frozen shock, pushing warm lips apart so his tongue could invade the warm cavern it had sought out for so long.

Tsuna squeaked at the sight of his best friend being assaulted while Yamamoto just watched, unable to take his eyes off the sight - it made him feel... _tingly, _very _weird_, especially down in his groin. He wasn't entirely sure of what he was feeling, the sensation new to him, but he notice that his skin crawled in a good way when Tsuna grabbed his arm, pulling him away from the two.

"You creep!" Gokudera had broken the kiss, shoving Bel back again. He didn't care for the loud bang that had been caused by the blond hitting the lockers once again - his mind was in turmoil; Bel was going _too _fucking _far _to get his attention, and it had to _stop _before Bel ended up _killing _himself. "Stay the fuck away from me!"

"I love it when you treat me rough~" Bel laughed as he watched Gokudera stomp away, the younger's two friends following after him. He refused to let himself become discouraged, knowing it was now only a matter of time before Gokudera gave in.

**XX**

"Can you believe him?!" Gokudera ranted to his friends after they finished their morning class. "He's going to really hurt himself - or kill himself if he keeps this up!"

"Well, maybe we can get hold of the Varia somehow." Tsuna lead his group up to the roof, keeping an eye out for Bel. "They'd have to come and get him if they knew the trouble he's causing."

"Xanxus won't do _shit,_" Gokudera disagreed. "He'd probably be happy to get rid of the stupid brat for a while."

"Guys..." Takeshi was quiet for once, an uncomfortable look on his face. He sighed as his friends ignored him, wishing they'd pay him attention now when he needed it - he had a very... _uncomfortable _problem, and he wasn't sure on what to do.

"Yeah, but Bel's doing something stupid." Tsuna frowned. "He's confident he knows what he's doing, but it's too dangerous."

"That's not _my _fault!" Gokudera was trying hard to shake the plaguing thoughts of just giving in to Bel from his mind - he didn't want Bel to kill himself by accident, especially over _him, _but there was enough bad blood between them to convince him to just leave it and let the stupid brat get what's coming to him. "I just wish he'd stayed the hell in Italy!"

"Guys...!" Yamamoto whimpered, again to no avail.

"Gokudera-kun, if - what is it, Yamamoto?" Tsuna frowned as his friend tugged on his sleeve, noticing the discomfort in the younger's features - the dark-haired boy's body was tense and he was biting his lip as if to stop noise from escaping his mouth.

Gokudera noticed this, too, and he stopped talking, a bit concerned - okay, _a lot _concerned - as to what was wrong with Yamamoto - had Bel gotten to him somehow...? Was this all a game in the blond's mind or something, trying to get to Gokudera...?

"Tsuna, it..." A dark blush crossed Yamamoto's cheeks as he glanced down at his lap, not knowing how to explain it. "...It's... _weird..._"

Tsuna's eyes widened as he realised what was wrong with Yamamoto, and he found himself scooting away from the younger as if the taller male had a disease. "...I..."

Gokudera felt pity for the younger, but he wasn't the kind of person who would help with such a problem - he'd rather stay here and keep his distance.

It was Tsuna who offered to help, noticing the dismayed expression on his friend's face. His features softened as he crawled closer to Yamamoto, reaching out to grab a strong shoulder. "I'll... Let's go down to the bathroom, Yamamoto... It will be easier to take care of in there."

Yamamoto nodded, moving both of his hands in front of his groin as he stood up. Gokudera watched as the two exited, his thoughts moving back to Bel.

_I don't want_ shit _to do that with psycho... _Gokudera nodded. _...But, I also don't want him to end up killing himself over something so petty... He's not going to listen to me, and I highly doubt the __Varia__would give a damn about what he's doing..._

_Maybe now I think I won't care and shoulder the burden if he _does _die, but... what if that _does _happen...? _

_I think I had better at least let him hang around us if he just wants attention... Hopefully that will make him stop being so stupid. _

_What a fucking attention whore. _


	7. Chapter 7

**Lemons. Lemons make the world happy. And finally, after all of that, here is the moment you've all been waiting for. **

For a week now, Gokudera had been putting up with Bel, letting the older teenager be with them in fear that the Varia would come back to Japan and murder him if Bel ended up killing himself by accident.

The two were walking home with Tsuna, Ryohei and Yamamoto. Yamamoto was telling them all about his latest baseball game, to which Tsuna and Ryohei listened politely to. Gokudera ignored the younger male, focused instead on Bel, who kept poking him with a slender finger.

"Can you stop that?" Gokudera growled, trying to push the blond away.

"Ushishishi~" Bel shook his head. "The prince doesn't mind if Hayato-kun doesn't want to be poked - he'd much rather Hayato-kun be the one doing the poking."

"You're fucking annoying." Gokudera groaned inwardly as his friends stopped, noticing they had arrived at the destination they usually all said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. "Guys, don't leave me alone with that lunatic!"

Bel just wrapped his arms around Gokudera, extending his tongue and licking up the younger male's face. He giggled as he released the silver-haired teenager, smirking. "Hayato-kun tastes delicious."

"Can you just _stop?" _Gokudera's hands itched to grab a stick of dynamite, but the images of Bel's scarred wrists flashed through his mind - he may hate this little shit, but he didn't want to be responsible for the other if constantly distancing himself from Bel caused the other an accidental death. "How old are you?"

"Sixteen." Bel grinned.

"No; I meant _mentally._" Gokudera rolled his eyes.

"Oh. Then the prince is sixty-nine mentally."

"You would..." Gokudera turned back to his friends, giving his goodbyes before he started walking back to his apartment, wishing he could tell the blond following him to fuck off.

"Hayato-kun~" Bel quickened his pace so that he was walking beside the slightly smaller male, making sure he was close enough for their bodies to brush against each other. "Hayato-kun, the prince wants ice cream when we get home~ Can he have the whole bucket?"

"Unless it's imaginary ice cream, _no_." Gokudera wasn't sure how much more of this he could take. "I don't _have _any ice cream."

"Go out and by some." Bel started whining at this, tugging on the sleeve of Gokudera's school jacket. "The prince demands ice cream! The peasant has to go out and buy some for him!"

"Get it yourself, you annoying bastard!" Gokudera snapped.

"No!" Bel stomped his foot childishly as he trailed after Gokudera, grabbing the younger's sleeve and trying to stop him. "The prince demands Hayato-kun to buy him ice cream!"

Seconds after feeling his self-control snap, Gokudera spun around and slammed Bel into the fence, growling. "What's it going to take for you to leave me alone?"

Bel's already-present grin widened as he felt pressure in his groin. "Hayato-kun is so aggressive~"

Gokudera had had enough, and he just wanted the blond brat to leave him alone. Pulling away from Bel, he grabbed the other by the collar of his school jacket, dragging him back to his apartment which was only a few minutes away - if this was what he had to do to finally get the other to leave him alone...

**XX**

Gokudera pushed Bel into the apartment once he had opened the door. He kicked it closed behind him as he lunged at Bel, pinning the fallen male to the ground. He leant down to hiss in Bel's ear, pushed to his limit - he wasn't a fucking babysitter, and he shouldn't have to stress about the older teenager being so fucking _stupid_; it wasn't fucking _fair! _

"Is this what you want?" Gokudera rolled Bel onto his back, his green eyes glaring intensely at the blond. "Is it? Is this what I have to do to make you _stop?"_

"Hayato-kun..." Bel was already fully-hard, his imagination having ran wild on the way back to the younger's home. He raised his hips and whimpered in pleasure as he rocked them against Gokudera's. "Hayato-kun, please..."

Gokudera didn't answer; he just pushed Bel's pants down enough to reveal the red boxers hiding beneath them. Pulling the red silk material down far enough to expose the blond's aching arousal, Gokudera felt his own groin stir in interest.

Bel moaned as the cold air hit his length. He reached out, grabbing hold of silver locks, trying to pull Gokudera's face down to his for a kiss.

The younger male pushed Bel's face away, refusing to kiss him. He instead moved his hands down to his own pants, dropping them and his underwear down. Though Bel was older than Gokudera, he was an awkwardly-built teenager, skinny and undeveloped - Gokudera assumed this was why his own arousal was bigger than Bel's, considering he was slightly smaller than the blond but had a stronger build.

"The prince wants to suck Hayato-kun~" Bel grinned, hoping his wishes would be granted.

"You'd better not bite me," the younger teenager growled. He thrust his hips forward, hissing as eager lips wrapped around him within seconds; the silver-haired teenager had a feeling he should start calling Bel 'Belphewhore' - there was no way he _hadn't _done this before.

Bel slipped his hand down to his lap, taking hold of his own shaft. He stroked it slowly, reaching down to massage his balls every couple of seconds as he took his soon-to-be lover deep into his throat. He hummed, sending vibrations up Gokudera's spine, earning a groan in response.

The blond's tongue licked and swirled along the bitter length, his lips wrapped tightly around it. He made soft noises as he pumped himself, aroused harder than he had been in a long time.

"Shit..." Gokudera gripped golden locks as he started thrusting his hips, knowing that the older teenager could take it. He felt Bel still his head and, looking down, he noticed the bony hand had started working Bel faster, as if this was making him hornier than he already was. "You're such a slut, Bel."

Bel pulled his mouth from Gokudera's length. He kissed the tip before he leant down further, pulling one of the younger's globes into his mouth with his tongue.

Gokudera moaned; it had never felt this good touching himself - Bel truly was a master of all things sexual.

"I'm going to fuck you so hard, Bel." Gokudera pushed the other away again before he stood up, bringing Bel with him. "Hands and knees."

Bel moaned in anticipation, not hesitating to do as ordered. He shook his hips as his puckered entrance called out to Gokudera, waiting impatiently. "Hurry up..."

The angsty teenager grabbed Bel by the hips, pulling him towards him. He circled a finger around the older teenager's entrance, noticing it had already been prepared.

"Been fingering yourself again, Belphe_whore__?_" Gokudera sneered.

Bel nodded. "...Left... class... Was so... horny..."

"Well, that makes it easier for both of us, doesn't it?" The younger positioned his hips at Bel's entrance and, without warning, slammed into Bel. He heard the other cry out in pleasure, feeling a bit of blood attaching to his shaft.

"Ha...yato..." The blond's hands grasped at the floorboards beneath them, moaning the slightly smaller male's name. "Ooh... More..."

Gokudera slid his hips back, looking down at the blood that dribbled down onto Bel's thigh. He felt slightly guilty about hurting him, but he knew it would only help Bel get off.

"Hayato...kun..." Bel moaned loudly, moving one hand beneath him to grip at his neglected arousal. He pumped it in time with his lover's thrusts, rocking his hips back to meet them.

"You're so fucking tight..." Gokudera hissed; it had been hard to move at first, but the blood he had drawn was acting as lubricant now. "Goddamn..."

"Fuck me..." Bel whimpered, feeling the coil in his stomach tightening with each second. "Hayato-kun..."

Gokudera pounded into Bel as hard and fast as he could, feeling his own release approaching. He slid a hand around to the teenager's face, slipping three digits into his mouth so that Bel could get off harder.

As predicted, Bel sucked greedily on those fingers, unable to hold back his climax any longer. Moaning around the digits, he sprayed his seed into the floorboards, some of it staining his uniform. His arms gave out and he fell to the floor, panting and moaning as he licked at Gokudera's fingers.

The younger male came when Bel's walls clenched tightly around him. He felt no remorse for emptying himself into the older male, and he couldn't stop his body from falling next to Bel's.

"Fuck..." Gokudera was still trying to come down from his high. He rolled onto his side, unable to coordinate his movements properly. He wanted to get up and leave Bel alone - but the blond had different ideas.

Bel wormed closer to Gokudera, nuzzling in against the younger's chest. He buried his face in the teenager's throat, sighing happily as he fisted the younger's jacket, not wanting him to leave just yet.

"Get off..." Gokudera tried to push the weaker male away, but his arms were like jelly. With a sigh, he resigned himself to the fact that he was no stuck with someone who apparently liked after-sex cuddling - or maybe it was just _him _Bel liked cuddling; the younger couldn't see Bel as wanting to be so emotionally close to someone else.

With a sleeping Bel now curled up against his chest, Gokudera just laid where he was, deciding he, too, may as well rest after this, and hopefully calm down from his bad mood.


	8. Chapter 8

"You really don't look well, Bel."

The addressed blond looked up from where he had been poking at his lunch. His back was against the fencing of the roof, his face as pale as a ghost. He just shrugged at the brunet, not having the motivation to reply verbally.

Gokudera, who was sitting next to him, eyed Bel suspiciously from the corner of his eye; he didn't know what, but he knew something was wrong with Bel - the blond had been coming to see him less and less, and each and every time, he grew quieter.

"Have you eaten anything?" Yamamoto sat on the other side of the Varia member and, out of instinct, wrapped his arm around the older male's shoulders. He frowned when Bel shook his head, knowing that this behaviour was _very _unusual for the knife-throwing psychopath. "You can have some of my sushi if you want it."

Bel pushed at Yamamoto, muttering that it was too hot to be so close. Gokudera not only noticed how weak and shaky the weaker male's arms were, but that it was far from cold today - it was raining and the cold wind sent shivers down everyone's spines.

Tsuna sat in between Gokudera and Yamamoto, closing their circle off. He leant in to the silver-haired male, whispering, "How long's it been since he started acting weird?"

"A few weeks, Tenth..." Gokudera kept his eyes on his stalker, not sure what to think about this situation. "This is the first time I've seen him in a few days."

"Where's he been staying at night?"

"I don't know, Tenth - he's... _weird._"

Bel stood up, and it was then the three younger males noticed the sweat dripping from the blond's face. He swayed before he turned around, staggering away from them.

"Bel?" The Vongola stayed where they were, not knowing what to do - they were almost sure that if they even _implied _Bel may need help, the older male would turn around and snap at them.

The

Varia Storm took only a few more steps before he collapsed to the ground, his breathing worsening with each passing minute.

Yamamoto was the first to arrive by Bel's side. He knelt down, brushing hair away from the older teenager's face, noticing that the always-hidden eyes were closed tightly as Bel panted. The baseball-loving boy put his hand on the blond's forehead, feeling skin that felt hotter than he knew was safe.

"Bel's really sick," the youngest male told his two friends. "I think he may need a hospital."

"We'll take him, then." Gokudera pointed to the collapsed male, his usually angry-expression soft with concern. "Carry him, Yamamoto."

Yamamoto scooped Bel into his arms, hearing the blond groan in discomfort. He cradled the Varia Storm so that Bel's head rested against his chest, trying his best not to hurt him.

The three ran from the school, not knowing what exactly was wrong, but knowing that it was serious.

~~XX~~

It had taken a few hours for a doctor to approach the Vongola trio after arriving at the hospital, and the look on his face made them all worried - was Bel's sickness _really _that _serious...? _

The brunet doctor stopped when he was within talking distance to the teenagers, his voice soft as if he was about to relay bad news. "This may come as a surprise, but... were any of you aware that he was self-harming?"

"Yeah..." Tsuna nodded, his brown eyes soft. "He wouldn't listen to us when we told him it was dangerous..."

"You didn't tell an adult?" The doctor frowned when the trio shook their heads. "...I don't mean to make any of you feel bad, but if you had told an adult and he was given proper medical treatment for his injuries, the risk of infection may have reduced. His injuries hadn't been cared for - just bandaged. They became infected, and the infection spread to his bloodstream. He has sepsis, a very serious illness. We've taken your friend into the ICU, but please be aware that there will always be a risk of him not pulling through."

The trio looked at their feet at these words, not knowing how to reply; while it was true Bel wasn't exactly their friend, they cared about his well-being and didn't want him to die - not like this.

Gokudera was silent as he turned and walked away from the group. No one stopped him, knowing he was probably feeling guilty that he hadn't tried hard enough to stop the older male from cutting himself.

"Is there anyone we need to contact about his condition?"

Tsuna shook his head, hating to lie but knowing it was for the better this time; he didn't want an innocent doctor trying to get into contact with the Varia - who knew how they'd react in this situation?

"No. No family. ...Can we see him?"

"Maybe now isn't the best time." The man hated having to decline these requests, but he understood that, as a doctor, this would be a heartbreaking thing for three teenagers to witness. "If there's no improvement within the next couple of days, you can see him, but I think it's better to wait for an improvement first."

Tsuna nodded, understanding. "Thank you. We'll come in and ask about him again tomorrow."

Tsuna and Yamamoto headed to their friend's side, noticing that Gokudera was just leaning against the wall, glaring at the ground. They were silent as they came to his side, not knowing if it was better to say anything to him or not.

It was Gokudera who broke the silence. "Stupid idiot kept crawling back to me..."

Yamamoto and Tsuna looked at each other, remaining quiet.

"He was... He was sick as shit, but he kept forcing himself to come to me... He did the most idiotic thing to get my attention, and now he's in ICU..."

"You didn't know this would happen..." Yamamoto said softly. He wanted to reach out and hug his friend, but he knew that would only make things worse.

"Well, none of that matters now..." Gokudera got back to his feet, walking to the hospital exit. "It's _his _fault for being so stupidly persistent... Trying to force himself back to me when he's so sick... Idiot..."

The two younger males watched as Gokudera left. Tsuna said, in a shaking voice, to Yamamoto, "It seems like Bel likes Gokudera-kun enough to seek out his comfort... He must have felt safe with Gokudera-kun when he was feeling so bad..."

Yamamoto nodded, wishing there was something he could do.


	9. Chapter 9

Three days had passed, and Bel wasn't getting any better. His doctor had finally allowed the Vongola trio in to see him, supervising the visit in case something went wrong.

Tsuna and Yamamoto sat on the chairs resting against the curtain that surrounded Bel, hiding him from the other patients sharing the large room. Gokudera hesitated before he stepped in, not knowing what to think as he saw that Bel was laying in a hospital bed with countless IVs and a ventilator covering the lower half of his face.

"How is he...?" Tsuna was almost too afraid to hear the answer upon seeing the Varia Storm like this.

"To be honest with you, he's doing poorly." The doctor - Tsutsumi - frowned, tapping his chest with his clipboard. "His lungs are giving out, and he isn't making any progress with the amount of antibiotics we're giving him. We're doing all we can for him."

Bel's bangs still covered his eyes, so the other teenagers weren't entirely sure of if he was awake or not - if he was, the blond hadn't moved since Yamamoto and Tsuna had sat down, even though he was lying on his side facing them.

However, when Gokudera moved to stand beside them, Bel's body twitched. Four sets of eyes focused on the older teenager and, when he started shifting his weight closer to the Vongola, they understood instantly; Bel wanted Gokudera.

"He wants you, Gokudera-kun..." Tsuna placed his hand on the silver-haired male's arm, guiding him forward.

Gokudera wasn't conscious of moving his feet; all he knew was that he was somehow moving toward his Storm counterpart. He felt as if he could throw up when a shaking, stick-thin arm reached out for him.

"Bel..." Gokudera was hardly aware of reaching out, taking Bel's hand in his own. He knelt by the bed, lowering his arm so that Bel's own rested against the mattress - there was no need for him to exert pointless energy when he was already so sick. "Bel, you dumbass... We told you this would happen..."

A faint, barely visible grin - but there nonetheless - crossed Bel's face as he heard this.

Gokudera reached out, running his hand through messy blond locks. The older male's hair had always been so well-kept, it was a shock to feel that the once-silky hair was so grimy, it felt oilier than anything he had ever touched before.

"Bet you feel like shit..." Gokudera shook his head, his hold on Bel's hand never loosening. "You stupid idiot, you should have told me you weren't feeling good. You could have stayed at my place instead of - well, wherever the hell you were. You spent all that time sleeping outside my front door, you didn't have to disappear then of all times..."

Bel squeezed the younger's hand, his mouth turning down in a frown. He moaned, his sound of distress sounding so different to what it usually was.

It was then Tsutsumi gently ushered the teenagers from Bel's bed, knowing that having visitors was putting too much stress on him.

Gokudera was hesitant to let go of Bel's hand, but when the older male started keening loudly, his body shifting in pain, he knew it was time to go - the pain he was in must have been overwhelming if _Bel_was distressed.

The Vongola Storm couldn't be sure as the older male's eyes were always hidden, but he swore he felt Bel's eyes follow him out of sight.

"Why haven't the Varia _done _anything about this?" Tsuna couldn't keep his thoughts bottled anymore on this subject - Bel had been in Japan for _months _now, and nothing had been done by Xanxus or Squalo to track down their missing member. Wouldn't Japan be the first logical choice to investigate? "Bel _needs _somebody!"

"They probably don't care, Tenth." Gokudera hated to say this when Bel was in such a bad condition, but it was how he felt. "Xanxus shot his own member for losing a fight. A missing member probably isn't going to make him react any better."

Yamamoto didn't say anything, remembering how bad Bel looked - he wasn't a doctor, but he knew if Bel was in the ICU and visibly _in pain, _the condition was more serious than he could probably ever comprehend.

"Imagine how he must feel being in the hospital by himself..." Tsuna's frown grew. "He's... He's always so happy and independent... It must feel like a prison in there for him."

"Do you think they'd let us visit him again tomorrow?" Gokudera bit his lip - ever since he had worked out that Bel's illness had probably been aggravated by the blond forcing his body to come to _him, _he felt as if he were responsible for taking care of Bel; after all, if it wasn't for Gokudera, Bel would never have left Italy again anyway.

"I don't know - he's very sick, Gokudera-kun. It might be better if he's alone; we really worked him up just by sitting there." Tsuna's soft eyes dropped to the ground. "...I'll... work out how to contact the Varia when I get home..."

Gokudera couldn't help but snort, believing the Varia wouldn't give a single shit about their Storm Guardian.

~~Namimori Hospital~~

"Bel-kun, can you sit up for me?" Tsutsumi stood by Bel's board, writing notes on his clipboard as he observed the teenager.

Bel made no sign he had heard the older male, and continued to lay on his side, silent. Tsutsumi reached out, carefully lifting Bel into a sitting position. He noticed that Bel swayed violently, before he coughed and, following that, vomited into the ventilator. The doctor was quick to remove it, watching as the blond vomited into his lap instead.

Tsutsumi waited until the nausea had passed before he laid Bel back down in the bed, replacing the oxygen mask until he could get a nurse to replace it.

"Septic shock..." Tsutsumi frowned as he wrote on the clipboard. "Multiple organ dysfunction syndrome already setting in..."

Tsutsumi looked down at the sixteen-year-old, seeing the boy gasp for air, his body curling into a ball.

"Chance of survival..." Tsutsumi wrote one more note on his clipboard. "...Extremely low..."


	10. Chapter 10

A week had gone by before Tsuna had worked out how to contact the Varia - talking to his dad wasn't something he enjoyed, but at least the man told him Squalo's contact number when the man rang him.

Currently, Tsuna was in the process of dialing the Varia Rain's number into the phone he had borrowed from his mother which, luckily, had international calling available. The woman was out of the house, having taken the babies out shopping with her, leaving Tsuna alone.

_I hope __Squalo's__in a good mood... If that's even possible..._ Tsuna winced and braced himself for the onslaught of screaming when his call was answered.

"Voi!" Squalo roared into his end of the phone, giving Tsuna a headache already - he wasn't entirely sure of what Squalo was raging about in Italian, but it was as loud and violent as his Japanese.

"T-tsuna..." Tsuna whimpered pathetically into the phone, "T-tsuna requires Japanese..."

"Tsuna? Who the fuck - oh, the Vongola Decimo?" Squalo's voice had softened as realisation dawned on him, but it took only a split second for him to start screaming again. "Do you know what fucking time it is in Italy, you little shit?! The fuck do you want?!"

"A-ah, I..." Tsuna took a deep breath before he started explaining. "...B-bel has been in Japan for -"

"_That's _where that little fuck ran off to?!" The sound of something banging in the background startled Tsuna; he could only imagine what Squalo was doing. "Voi! I'll kill the bastard when he comes back!"

"S-sqaulo-san..." the brunet was hesitant, but he eventually whispered what he needed to tell the other. "...B-bel is... Bel might be dying..."

"The prince trash isn't going to die, you stupid brat!" Squalo argued. "He's too fucking stubborn to let himself die!"

"But he's _sick _and in _hospital! _I've been seeing him, Squalo-san! He's... He's sick..."

"Voi! You think we can just drop shit and fly out for _him?!" _The sound of smashing glass made Tsuna wish he had called at a time he apparently wouldn't wake the man up - what time _was _it over there, anyway? "Why do you think we haven't gone looking for him?! We're too fucking busy to run after snot-nosed brats like Bel! He can take care of himself!"

"What didn't you understand about him _dying?!_" Tsuna found himself arguing back, unable to believe Squalo was being so unreasonable about his own subordinate - if what Reborn had said about Bel was true, surely Squalo would have been one of the ones who had raised the boy...? "Why can't you _get _that?!"

"It's not like I don't give a fuck!" Squalo sounded more pissed off than Tsuna had ever heard him. "Of _course _I give a damn about this! But you expect an _assassination _squad to fly out and sit by Bel's side and cry?! Do you?! We've got better things to do with our time then play the distressed parent role!"

"But you guys _are _like a family to him!" Tsuna could feel tears of frustration well in his eyes. "He's been with you since he was _eight! _You're probably the only ones he thinks of as his family!"

"Kid, Bel is a cold-hearted, blood-thirsty murderer who kills for fun, and if he gave a shit about family, he wouldn't have slaughtered _his,_" Squalo hissed. "Call me back when he dies. Otherwise, don't bother using this number again unless he's ready to come back to Italy."

"S-squal -!" Before Tsuna could even finish saying the silver-haired male's name, Squalo had hung up on him.

With a sigh, Tsuna realised this was exactly what Gokudera had been talking about - as expected, the Varia didn't care whether Bel lived or died.

Maybe the brunet was wrong to feel this way, but he felt as if _they_ had been more of a family to Bel than the Varia had ever been to him.


	11. Chapter 11

One month after Tsuna had contacted the Varia, he and his friends went to visit Bel at the hospital again. The teenager's doctor had told them that Bel was still critical, trying to recover from septic shock - and now, they had to worry about the fact that the illness had done enough damage to cause his organs to stop working properly, bordering on failure.

The three younger males had taken their usual seats by Bel's side, not sure if Bel was awake or not - if he was, he was not acknowledging any of them. He was curled up into a ball on top of the blankets, his mouth hidden behind one of his hands that gripped tightly the blanket. Apart from the usual multitude of drips and IVs Bel had, there were two new, thick tubes connected to his arm, feeding back to a machine.

"What's that?" Yamamoto pointed to the bulky machine, his dark eyes soft.

"It's a dialysis machine," Tsutsumi explained. "It's cleaning all the bad stuff out of his blood."

"I thought that's what kidneys are for?" The youngest male tilted his head.

"His kidneys aren't functioning at the moment," the doctor explained. "Bel-kun is very sick and weak - he's dependent on many things to keep him going."

Gokudera sat on the edge of Bel's bed, running his hand through blond hair. He sighed as he looked at the doctor. "You said he's coming out of the shock last time, right? That he's showing improvement?"

"That's right." The doctor nodded.

"Does that mean he's out of the danger zone?" The silver-haired teenager looked down at Bel, wishing the other didn't hide his eyes - he wanted to know if Bel was awake or not.

"Well... He is, and he isn't. He's recovering from the shock, but if his organs shut down completely, there will be nothing we can do except keep him on life support. We're trying to keep his body from reaching that stage, and we can only hope that soon he'll get some strength back into his system."

"Does that machine hurt him?" The dark-haired teenager was as sweet as ever, frowning as he thought about Bel's well-being.

"It just makes him very sleepy." Tsutsumi smiled. "I think he's asleep now - he was awake when we were starting the procedure."

Yamamoto nodded, wishing there was something he could do to help.

Gokudera brushed hair out of Bel's face, finding that both of his eyes were closed tightly, sleeping. He let the bangs fall back into place as he moved his hand down the older male's body, feeling as if this was his fault.

"In good news, once - and _if - _he can function by himself again, and his appetite returns, we can look at letting him go home - he'll need someone to care for him, just in case. However, with how long he's been here, it's highly likely he's going to need physical therapy to help get strength back into his body."

As much as Gokudera wanted to be able to bring Bel back to his own apartment, he wasn't sure if he would be able to look after the blond - his patience was short, and he didn't have much medical experience. If he stuffed something up...

"We can do that," Tsuna volunteered. He looked at his two friends, seeing them nod in agreement.

"When he -"

"-Hayato...kun...?"

Everyone looked down at Bel, finding the older teenager was starting to stir. His hands reached out, gripping at the black fabric of Gokudera's pants, his head rising from the bed slowly. He was frowning, almost as if he wasn't entirely sure of what was going on.

"Bel?" Gokudera pulled his hands away from the blond, not entirely sure of why he did so.

"Where... Where am I...?" The younger males couldn't be sure because of the ventilator covering Bel's mouth, but the Varia Storm sounded genuinely confused, and a tad scared.

Yamamoto looked up to Tsutsumi at this, frowning. "Is he okay...?"

"It's normal in patients suffering from Sepsis," the doctor soothed. "Just soothe him."

Gokudera nodded, returning his hand to filthy blond locks. He patted the older teenager's head, not knowing what else to do.

"Hayato...kun..." Bel dropped his head back to the mattress heavily, his grip tightening on Gokudera's pants. He moaned softly, otherwise remaining quiet.

"Why's he moaning?" Gokudera bit his lip, greatly concerned - seeing Bel like this... He had never thought he'd see the day where Bel showed a weakness.

"He's still in a lot of pain." The dark-haired doctor scribbled on his clipboard, sparing a soft glance for the small group. "It may be a while before the pain recedes."

"How long until the shock goes away?" Tsuna asked, hoping Bel would be okay.

"Well, I'd give it maybe another week or two if nothing goes wrong. It was a rather severe infection to begin with, and there wasn't much we could do about it except give him antibiotics."

Bel whimpered as his frown grew. He shuddered as he felt a hand rest on his arm, but he soon tried to press closer to Gokudera, as if the silver-haired teenager was the only one who could bring him comfort.

"Please do keep in mind that just because he's showing signs of improvement doesn't mean things _can't _go wrong," the doctor said softly. "He could still go downhill pretty fast, so don't get your hopes up."

Tsuna and Yamamoto nodded while Gokudera just ran his hand over Bel's back, his other caressing golden locks.

"Gokudera-kun, I have to go home now," Tsuna said as he stood up. "Text me if anything happens."

"I'll come with you, Tsuna." Yamamoto followed his friend, stopping only to spare a glance at Bel and Gokudera - his heart was too big, and it _hurt _seeing this scene.

Gokudera just sat with Bel, eventually finding that a bony hand had somehow found his, slipping itself in to Gokudera's hold. Bel squeezed his hand, his chest rising and falling haphazardly as his body twitched every now and then.

"I'm here..." Gokudera squeezed back, helping Bel to rest his head on his lap. "I'm here..."

Bel, feeling safer and more comfortable than he had since he had been here, closed his eyes, drifting back to sleep. Gokudera stayed with him, all the while caressing the older male's body.


	12. Chapter 12

**Apologies for the late update; not only has our internet been down, we're going through a severe heatwave which knocked me off my feet for a while. Since I still don't feel one-hundred per cent, updates may be a tad delayed until the weather cools down.**

Five months had passed since Bel had been admitted to the hospital, and now he was finally ready to come home. Most of his organs had made a complete recovery, except for his lungs which were still weak, but nothing serious.

After being in bed for so long, Bel hadn't been able to walk, leaving Yamamoto to carry Bel back to Tsuna's house, which was closest to the hospital - having been jostled around into the younger male's arms had left the blond breathless, and they didn't want to put any more undo stress on his body by carrying him further than needed.

The four were quiet as they walked through the streets, Tsuna and Yamamoto making small talk while Gokudera and Bel remained silent; Gokudera was lost in thought, and Bel had fallen asleep once again.

"I called Squalo-san a few days ago," Tsuna said softly to Yamamoto, not wanting to disturb the two older males. "I told him Bel's doctor said he was almost ready to be released."

"What did he say?" Yamamoto's eyes shone with admiration at the mention of Squalo - the Varia Rain was someone who Yamamoto greatly looked up to, having respected greatly as a superior swordsman during their fight.

"He said he was going to fly out." Tsuna looked at his feet for a few seconds before he looked back up, talking again. "He didn't seem to care, but... Lussuria-san was in the room with him. I heard him in the background telling Squalo-san to go check on Bel. Lussuria-san seemed worried."

"When do you think he'll be here?" Yamamoto glanced down at the blond curled against him. He smiled at the way Bel sucked gently against his knuckles, the sleeping blond seemingly no more dangerous than a kitten.

"He said he had to take care of some stuff before he could fly out." Tsuna frowned. "...I'm not sure when that will be..."

Gokudera, who had been listening in to their conversation, spoke. "Tenth, we don't _need _the Varia! I'm sure we're more capable of looking after Bel than _they_ are!"

"That may be so, Gokudera-kun, but the Varia are Bel's family..." Tsuna hated to think about sending the blond back to the ones who hadn't cared about the fact that he was in a hospital dying, but if it was Italy Bel wanted to return to, they had no choice. "We can't keep him here if Squalo-san wants to bring Bel back with him."

Gokudera knew the Vongola Decimo was right, but still... He was almost sure Varia would mistreat him and work him too hard while he was still recovering or even just leave him in the room by himself without checking on him. What if they tried to send him on a mission he was too weak to complete? That could cost the Varia Storm his _life...!_

"We're almost there." Yamamoto smiled as they turned onto Tsuna's street, knowing it was only a matter of minutes before they could rest Bel in a bed and make him comfortable.

The walk back to Tsuna's house was quiet once again, but once they entered the house and went up to Tsuna's room, things were more lively.

"H-hayato...kun...?" Bel stirred as he felt himself being lowered onto a mattress. He groaned, his first thought that he had dreamt the Vongola trio taking him away from that horrid place and that he was, in fact, still there - that was, until he looked around him and noticed that the sickening white of the hospital was gone, replaced instead by Tsuna's bedroom.

"Feeling okay, Bel?" Yamamoto placed his hand against Bel's forehead, worried about why the older male would groan - had he hurt the now-frail teenager somehow?

Bel just nodded, pulling away from the younger's hand. He looked around, taking in his new surroundings. The floor was hardwood, the walls pale. There was a desk tucked away by the bed, a stand by the door, but what caught his interest the most was the TV and the gaming consoles next to it.

Trying to push himself into a sitting position with arms that couldn't hold his own weight anymore, Bel gave up and pointed to the TV, a large grin on his face.

"What's up?" Yamamoto glanced to what Bel was pointing at, quick to guess what he wanted. "You want to play a game?"

Bel nodded, his grin widening. He giggled as he watched Tsuna move to the TV and set everything up, happy to take the controller that was eventually passed to him.

The Varia Storm loved video games. He had a large collection in his room back at Varia Headquarters, but it had been so long since he could do anything, his once-nimble fingers were slow and uncoordinated as he quietly played Mario Kart, grinning all the while.

The three younger males sat around on the floor, talking amongst themselves as they left Bel to himself. Their conversation was interrupted every now and then by Bel dropping the controller to the floor - though after the first couple of times, Tsuna had a sneaking suspicion he was doing it on purpose if the giggles Bel made as he was handed back his controller meant anything.

"Hayato-kun..."

Gokudera looked up at the blond as his name was called. He tilted his head, unable to believe that Bel could be back to his usual mischievous self so soon after being at death's door. He shrugged as the older male pointed to the gaming system again, getting up to take the second controller.

"I should tell you now that I'm renowned for winning against the Tenth whenever we play," the silver-haired teenager warned as he took a seat next to Bel. "You'd better step up your game."

Bel stuck his tongue out at the stronger male, happy to finally be out of that... that _prison. _He was feeling _much _better now than he had been, hating to be stuck in that bed like it was a cell he wasn't allowed out of. He liked his freedom, and he never again wanted to be confined like that.

_The prince feels so happy~ _Bel giggled as he started playing the video game with Gokudera, more relaxed than in months. _He loves __Hayato__-__kun__so much~ ...Loves... __Hayato__-__kun__...? _Can _the prince love someone...? _

Deciding not to think too much on it, Bel focused his attention back to the game, giggling - too weak to laugh loudly - as he crashed his car seconds within starting the race.

Gokudera just laughed, reasoning the older male's skills to that of a drunken player - no one could crash their car as badly as Bel was right now without something impairing their coordination.

~~XX~~

A few hours had passed by, and in that time Bel had eaten a few bowls of ice cream and played a few more video games before he went back to sleep, his body now-unused to being so active.

The younger three had taken over the gaming system and were trying to play quietly so they didn't disturb Bel, but someone ringing the doorbell gained a loud moan of protest from Tsuna.

"I'll be back." Tsuna tread across the floor as he left the room, wondering who would be visiting him - his mother wasn't home, so surely it couldn't be someone looking for her, right?

Upstairs, Gokudera sipped at his juice box as he looked at Yamamoto, finding the dark-haired boy sprawled out across the floor as he waited for Tsuna to come back. It was silent in the house, save Bel's loud breathing, until...

"Voi!"

Yamamoto and Gokudera jumped in surprise at the unmistakable shouting of Squalo from downstairs. They looked to the bedroom door, wondering if they should go down in case the Rain Guardian was trying to kill the brunet, but it didn't seem to matter as footsteps started stomping their way up the stairs. Looking at Bel, the two were surprised to find he was sleeping through this - then again, he had probably grown used to it.

Within seconds, Squalo appeared in the bedroom with Tsuna behind him, the brunet looking greatly intimidated. The man took one look around the room before his eyes narrowed at Bel.

"VoI! Get the fuck up, you little shit!" the silver-haired man roared, moving towards Bel.

Bel frowned as he lifted his head at the commotion, bringing a hand to his head. When Squalo continued to shout at him, he merely moved the pillow over his now-throbbing head, trying to block it out - his headache was already bad, and now Squalo was making him feel sick again.

Gokudera, who noticed that Bel was becoming distressed, moved in between the two older males, trying to at least get Squalo to stop shouting.

"Bel's sick!" Gokudera was ready to grab a stick of dynamite if the Varia Strategy Captain showed any intent of using that sword he was never seen without. "He's sick, and your shouting is making him feel worse! Keep your voice down!"

"The brat is _fine_!" The long-haired male pointed his sword at Bel, as if to emphasise his point.

"He _just _got out of _hospital_!" The silver-haired teenager couldn't believe how shallow Squalo was being. "He almost _died!_"

Bel, whose head only started pounding more and more, felt as if he was going to throw up - he still wasn't feeling one-hundred per cent, and he wanted it to be _quiet. _He was vaguely aware of the two arguing over him before something loud crashed to the ground and a hand grabbed his arm, digging in to the area he had had surgery on to make room for the dialysis machine.

The blond moaned as he tried to pull his arm away, feeling the bandage that had been wrapped around the operated area become sticky with blood. This would, if he were feeling better, arouse him - but it was hard to have even the slightest sexual interest when he was feeling so ill. Instead, it just hurt him like it would any other person.

"You idiot!" Gokudera, from where he had been shoved to the ground, stood back up. He pushed at Squalo, trying to get him away from the blond. "Moron, you're hurting him!"

Squalo opened his mouth to argue back, but he stopped when Bel leant over the bed, throwing up on his superior's boots. Gokudera reached out to steady him while Squalo snarled inwardly.

"See?" Gokudera ran a soothing hand over Bel's back, trying to calm the other down. "He's _sick._"

Squalo, who knew Bel was rarely sick, backed off at this sight - though the Varia Storm had come down with his fair share of colds, it was rare for him to be sick enough to be bedridden, and if he was, it was usually pretty nasty.

"...He's still coming back to Italy with me." Squalo narrowed his eyes at the silver-haired teenager. "I didn't fly all the fucking way out here to come back alone."

"Squalo, he's too sick to travel!" Gokudera was feeling his temper about to get the better of him, but no matter what, he didn't want to make Bel feel any worse than he already was. "Leave him here!"

"What do _you _care about his condition, you fucking bastard?" Squalo reached out, trying to grip the collar of Gokudera's shirt. "You _hate _him. You could care less if he dies, and you _know _this!"

Yamamoto and Tsuna, who had been standing at the back of the room, too scared to intervene, finally spoke up; they could see how hard Gokudera was trying, and it wasn't fair to let their friend fight alone for Bel.

"S-squalo-san..." Tsuna took a few steps towards the two, his arms held out in a defensive manner, "...Squalo-san, what Gokudera-kun is saying is that if Bel goes back to Italy with you, it could kill him..."

"Do you even _know _this little shit?" Squalo jerked his thumb over his shoulder towards his subordinate. "_Nothing _is going to kill that kid."

"_Something_ almost did!" Tsuna cried. "I phoned you, and I told you everything, and you brushed it off like it didn't matter if Bel died or not! The only reason you're here is because Lussuria made you!"

"That faggot didn't make me do _anything!_" Squalo sneered. "Stay out of things you don't understand."

Bel moaned loudly, curling into a ball. He whimpered, trying to pull the pillow down further to block out more sound. He was feeling so sick, it was as if it was back in its early stages when he was feeling too unwell to so much as sleep outside of Gokudera's apartment.

"Squalo-san, we need you to leave..." Tsuna hated kicking people out of his home, but he had to look out for Bel. "He's so sick... We swear, you can have him back when he's better - but not now. You can take him back to Italy when he's well again."

Squalo, as much as he hated doing what others told him to do, left - he wanted to kill those brats, but he knew it wouldn't go down well if he slaughtered the VongolaDecimo for something like this - it would lead to another Crib Incident, one with more severe results, he was certain of it.

"...I'll be back for that shithead as soon as he's well enough to travel..." Squalo muttered angrily under his breath as he left the room, leaving the four alone.

Gokudera pulled the pillow from Bel's hands, lifting him up carefully to slip it back beneath his head. He caressed the teenager's cheek with his thumb, wishing he could do more to help.

"Tenth, he needs some painkillers." Gokudera grabbed the hem of Bel's striped shirt - he was glad the hospital had stored his clothing for when he was released - and raised it to the older male's mouth, wiping at the vomit that stuck to his pale skin.

Tsuna was quick to leave the room to get Bel painkillers, unable to fathom how bad the older male was feeling.

Yamamoto moved to Gokudera's side, placing a hand on Bel's shoulder. He frowned as he noticed the bandage around Bel's arm was spotted with blood, and he could only imagine how badly that must hurt - he had seen it when a nurse was dressing the ugly wound, resembling nothing but a gaping hole with tubes inside it. When he had asked about it, the nurse had told him they had performed surgery on the blond's arm so they could utilise the dialysis machine.

"It's okay, Bel." Gokudera's voice was soft as he waited for Tsuna to return. "It's okay."

Bel whimpered as he raised an arm, laying it over his face. "Hurts..."

"I know..." Gokudera reached down, taking Bel's hand in his own. "...I know..."

When Tsuna returned with a glass of water and painkillers, Yamamoto helped Bel sit up, supporting the older teenager. Gokudera took the items from his friend, wanting to be the one to help.

Bel turned his head away as pills were placed against his lips, but with a few soothing words from Gokudera, he allowed the two tablets to be slipped into his mouth. He tilted his head back as the glass of water was next placed at his lips, the cool liquid feeling good as it disappeared down his throat, taking the pills with it. He felt Gokudera rubbing his throat to make it easier, and he was grateful - he had hated all the IVs that had been used on him back at the hospital, feeling uneasy about the foreign situation.

"You'll feel better soon," Yamamoto promised, patting blond hair.

Bel just nodded, wishing he could have a shower - it wasn't until Yamamoto had touched his precious hair did he realise he felt absolutely filthy, unable to recall the last time his hygiene had been taken care of - in the hospital, he had fought against the nurses trying to bathe him, feeling so sick he didn't want to do anything but just lay in his bed, much less have hands wandering around his body.

With a sigh, Bel closed his eyes, the heavy-duty painkillers knocking him out almost instantly.


	13. Chapter 13

When Gokudera arrived at Tsuna's house the next morning to walk to school with the brunet, he first went upstairs to check on Bel.

"Tenth?" Gokudera stepped into the younger's room, finding the brunet making sure that Bel was comfortable before he left. "Tenth, how's he doing?"

"He slept through the night." Tsuna tucked Bel into the bed, making sure his pillow was fluffed up enough for him. "He woke up coughing, but he seems okay. I've left him a glass of water and mum is going to keep an eye on him for me."

Gokudera nodded to his friend as he knelt down before the bed. He felt Bel's hand immediately grip his, the blond grinning widely.

"You just live to be annoying, don't you?" Gokudera couldn't help but feel a warmth in his chest as he spoke to the older male, reaching out to cup Bel's cheek. "Worrying us all like that and now acting as if you hadn't almost just died..."

"Hayato-kun..." Bel's voice was weak, breathless as he gestured for the Vongola Storm to come closer to him. "Hayato...kun..."

Gokudera moved closer, knowing that talking left Bel struggling to breathe these days. "What is it?"

Bel didn't reply verbally; he instead pressed his lips against Gokudera's, tightening his hold on the younger's hand.

Gokudera was frozen in surprise before he relaxed, returning the kiss. He opened his mouth, pressing his tongue against Bel's lips, asking for entrance. It was granted but, within seconds, Bel pulled away, coughing.

"Okay, Bel?" Gokudera should have known better than to take away Bel's breath like that - he had spent _months _on a ventilator, trying to compensate for his lungs that had stopped functioning properly.

Bel nodded, turning his head away as he coughed into his hand. Gokudera had a feeling the blond didn't want to be seen like this.

The silver-haired teenager grabbed the glass of water Tsuna had been talking about, raising it to dry lips. Bel drank greedily for a few seconds before he pushed the glass away, rolling back onto his side to smile up at Gokudera - a genuine smile that lacked the blood-thirsty quality that made Bel who he was.

Gokudera leant down again, reaching out to kiss Bel on the corner of his lips. Neither of them said anything as Gokudera left the room - they didn't have to. They both knew that, despite having met on a _very _wrong start, they had put all that behind them, able to accept the other for who they were.

Now that Bel was alone, he yawned and curled back into a ball, closing his eyes as he waited for everyone to finish school.

~~XX~~

Bel was happy when, hours later, Tsuna's bedroom door opened again and the trio stepped in. He dropped the gaming controller he had been holding, trying to push himself up to greet them.

"Hey, Bel." Tsuna smiled at the older teenager while Yamamoto slung his arm around frail shoulders. Gokudera shrugged, not really sure what he was supposed to say.

The Varia Storm waited until Gokudera approached him before he said, in a voice hoarse from rarely being used, "Hayato-kun... Bath...?"

"I guess." Gokudera reached out, pulling Bel from the bed. He wasn't as strong as Yamamoto so he couldn't carry the older male into the bathroom, instead supporting one side while Tsuna held the other, trying to get Bel to walk to the bathroom.

Bel's legs were jelly, his toes dragging along the floorboards, unable to be moved by willpower alone. Gokudera was smart enough to link this fact with the frown that was crossing the older teenager's face.

Tsuna was quick to leave the bathroom once he knew the older two could handle themselves, returning back to Yamamoto who waited patiently in the bedroom.

"How hot do you have your baths?" Gokudera had sat Bel on the closed lid of the toilet, working the taps to the bath.

"Hot..." Bel muttered, looking at his feet.

The silver-haired teenager didn't push Bel, knowing the blond must be feeling crap over being unable to look after himself. It was silent between them as the younger male handled the bath, but once it was time for Bel to get in, the blond didn't make it easy.

"No...!" the blond whined in a childish manner, pulling away from the younger's hands. He slipped off the toilet seat, sprawling out on the ground. He shook his head, trying to catch his breath after the fall. "...The prince... can... do it..."

Gokudera shook his head, knowing Bel _couldn't, _but not to argue - he knew all the older teenager wanted was to not feel so helpless and dependent.

Green eyes watched as Bel struggled to push himself into a sitting position, knowing there was no way the blond was going to walk over there. He withheld a laugh as the other eventually resorted to dragging himself across the ground to the tub, greatly amused by the frail boy's perseverance.

Bel coughed as he stopped for a minute, gathering his breath. He then reached up to the top of the tub, trying to use the side to pull himself to his feet.

The silver-haired male didn't believe Bel was going to get into the tub by himself but, after what felt like at least ten minutes, his eyes widened as the other eventually toppled over the side head-first, his legs swinging limply into the air as the blond disappeared under water.

Gokudera dragged Bel out from under the water, holding the older teenager steady as the skinnier male coughed and spluttered, gasping for air.

"You idiot, what did you think was going to happen?" Gokudera shook his head disapprovingly once Bel regained control of himself, shooting the younger a mischievous grin.

"Did... it..." Bel moved closer to the side of the tub so that he could rest his wet hair against Gokudera's clothed chest. "Can you wash... the prince's hair...?"

Gokudera could only roll his eyes before he shrugged, reaching out for the bottle of shampoo sitting on the edge of the tub. He couldn't help but shake his head as Bel busied himself with a rubber ducky he found sitting within arm's reach, amused by the teenager's childish nature - for one of the most blood-thirsty, strongest assassins in the entire Mafia, he was still only a child at heart.

"Bel!" As if Bel had read the younger's thoughts, the blond splashed water at him, giggling all the while.

Yep. Definitely still a child.

**I think this would be a good place to end this ****fic****, leaving it an open ending for whoever wants ****Bel****to go where (stay in Japan or go back to Italy), or if you'd rather a closed ending with an epilogue next chapter regarding that, I can do that as well. Whatever you guys want. **


	14. Chapter 14

**I was going to do the epilogue here, but I decided to do something better. So the epilogue will be next chapter instead. I think you'll all greatly enjoy this chapter :D**

For two months, Bel had stayed in Japan with Gokudera and the others. His condition had improved greatly once he had started having physical therapy, and the only remainder of what had almost killed him was weak breathing and the asthma that had developed over time - nothing the blond couldn't handle.

Bel was walking again, albeit slowly and staggering every now and then. His strength hadn't returned, leaving him with a skinny, frail body that gave him an almost feminine appearance. However, despite this, Bel's cheerful and childish personality hadn't disappeared - if anything, he was even more grateful for the life he had almost lost.

Gokudera's relationship with the older teenager had become that of boyfriends, and though Bel was staying with Tsuna so the brunet's mother could keep an eye on him, he often asked Yamamoto or Tsuna to take him to Gokudera's for a few hours where they would almost always end up making love together - though Bel's masochistic side was still there, he would lose his breath and choke if it became too intense for his weak body to keep up with.

The only issue neither of them wanted to bring up was that of Italy and the rest of the Varia - particularly Squalo, who had been spending the past two months in a hotel, impatiently demanding for Bel to "get the fuck over it and come home".

"Hey, Bel?" Gokudera stepped into his living room where Bel was seated on the couch, a large bucket of strawberry ice cream in his lap. Obscured eyes wandered over to him, an excited grin crossing Bel's face.

"Is Hayato-kun here to eat ice cream with the prince?" The Varia Storm lifted the bucket into the air as if to emphasise his point. "The prince doesn't mind sharing with him~"

"Actually..." Gokudera's green eyes dropped to the ground as he frowned. He shifted uncomfortably as he handed his phone out to the older male, revealing the last conversation he had had with Tsuna over text.

Bel took the phone with bony hands, reading over the text. He grinned as he read the first message from Tsuna, one saying that Squalo had been over again screaming at him, but his grin soon disappeared the further he got into the messages.

The scrawny male handed back the phone, looking at his bucket of ice cream. "...The prince... I don't want to go back to Italy..."

Gokudera sat on the couch beside the older teenager, wrapping an arm around fragile shoulders. He felt Bel curl in against him, and he hated that there was nothing he could do - they couldn't keep Bel here, especially with the blond's superior demanding for him to return to Italy the next day or revoke his title as Varia Storm - and probably forfeit his life in doing so.

"At least we still have a day together." Gokudera reached out, putting the ice cream on the coffee table in front of them. He then pulled Bel onto his lap, wrapping his arms around the assassin tightly.

"But I want to stay here with Hayato-kun..." Bel nuzzled in against the younger's neck, his wet tongue licking at exposed skin. His teeth nibbled a bit, trying to distract himself. "...Can the prince at least have farewell sex...?"

Gokudera laughed as he shrugged. He reached down, unclipping Bel's belt and pulling it from the lithe waist. He next pushed black Varia pants down, the blond lifting his hips to make it easier.

Bel helped his lover shed his clothes after he was skin naked, the two connecting their lips together. Gokudera's tongue invaded Bel's mouth, their tongues dancing together, as stronger hands caressed the soft skin of Bel's body.

The silver-haired teenager slipped dry digits into Bel's backside, preparing him slowly, their lips only parting for when the blond needed air. Bel groaned as he felt the fingers caress his sensitive walls, searching for the place they so often caressed.

"Hayato...kun..." Bel moved his hips down as he felt a third finger join the other two, rocking against them as he reached between their bodies to pump his lover to full hardness.

Gokudera smirked as Bel let out a loud moan as he scraped against that spot that drove the older male crazy with need. He held his hand still as Bel thrust his body down on those three digits, a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek already.

"That's enough..." Gokudera pulled his fingers out of the boy, instead putting his hands on Bel's shoulders to push the teenager to his knees.

Bel obeyed, knowing what was wanted. He knelt by the couch, pushing the younger's legs apart as he lowered his mouth around the hot erection, lubing the other. His hand caressed the globes just beneath his mouth, his other hand working against his own length.

"Shit..." Gokudera tangled his fingers in golden locks as Bel's tongue dipped into the slit of his member, knowing that his lover was very talented when it came to his mouth. "Belphegor..."

The blond slipped his mouth down further, licking at the base before bringing his tongue back to the tip, sucking on it like an ice cream. He pulled away only when he felt he was becoming out of breath, kissing the tip as he always did when finishing up.

The Varia Storm clambered back onto his lover's lap, holding his hips just above his Vongola counterpart. He waited until Gokudera eased the tip inside before he pushed down, grunting as he felt his walls stretch to accommodate the unexpected intrusion.

Gokudera held Bel's hips, forcing him to stay still until the other adjusted - if he didn't, Bel would start moving straight away, eventually overwhelming himself and losing his breath.

"When you're ready..." Gokudera purred into the scrawny male's ear, his thumbs caressing the skin he was holding.

Bel nodded after a few seconds, knowing his limits. He waited until the large hands were pulled from his body before he raised his hips, riding the younger slowly. His hands gripped tightly Gokudera's shoulders, his forehead resting against the crook of the younger teenager's neck and shoulders.

Gokudera ran a hand through blond hair once again, holding the other as Bel's movements slowly increased to a tempo the blond could handle without exertion.

"Hayato-kun..." Bel moaned, snaking a hand down to his arousal. "Nngh... Hayato-kun..."

Gokudera's eyes were closed as he enjoyed the sensations running rampart through his body, opening them only when he felt the other's movements become more erratic.

"Slow down, Bel..." Gokudera's hands moved back to Bel's hips as the other coughed, guiding him back into a calm rhythm. "Not too fast..."

Bel nodded as his fingertips dug into the skin of Gokudera's shoulder. He whimpered as he felt himself getting closer, certain that he wasn't going to last much longer.

Gokudera, when he felt hot walls start to clench around him, held Bel still, working against the other's arousal instead - it would only kill the older male's orgasm if it was interrupted by breathless coughs, after all.

"Ready?" Gokudera felt Bel's body going slack against his, the shaft pulsating in his hands rapidly. He pumped quick as he pulled the teenager into climax, hot seed spilling over their bodies.

Gokudera released inside his lover, neither of them moving for a while; they were both content to just stay how they were for as long as they could.

"...I don't... want to leave you..." Bel mumbled as he closed his eyes, knowing that Gokudera made a very comfortable pillow. Gokudera shifted, about to pull himself out of Bel when the older male stopped him. "No... Leave it in... Want to sleep like this..."

Gokudera just nodded, caressing the fragile male's head tenderly as he wrapped another arm around Bel, pulling him close. "I love you, Bel..."

"The prince loves his Hayato-kun, too..." came the sleepy mutter from Bel.

With that said, the two spent the rest of the day on the couch, just resting until they had to part.


	15. Chapter 15

Ten years into the future, Tsuna had become the Vongola Decimo, and he was forced to hold a meeting with the Varia to talk about how he was going to be running things from now on.

The Varia's flight to Japan was supposed to be landing any minute now, and while Tsuna, Yamamoto and Gokudera waited for them, Gokudera couldn't help but feel excited to see his boyfriend of ten years again - their relationship had survived the months apart, mostly due to the fact that Bel was a self-entitled little shit and often abandoned missions halfway through in favor of taking the next flight to Japan to wind up on the younger male's doorstep without warning. The Varia had tried to stop this but, after the first couple of times that involved Squalo flying out to drag the Storm Guardian by the hair back to Italy, they quickly gave up when Bel started throwing temper tantrums and went as far as to bite his comrades - no one wanted that mouth anywhere near their bodies, not wanting to even _imagine _where it had been.

Now, as the Varia's flight number was called, the Vongola trio stood up, ready to collect them from the terminal. The six of them - Mammon, replaced after his death by Mukuro's prized student, Fran - eventually sauntered out amongst the hordes of fellow travelers. Unsurprisingly, Belphegor was in the lead, his usual grin wider than usual.

"Hayato-kun~" The blond ran to his lover's side, his long arms wrapping tightly around the silver-haired male's body. "Hayato-kun, the prince missed you so much~"

"I missed you, too, you big idiot - now get off me." Gokudera pushed his Storm counterpart away, embarrassed by the onlookers staring at them.

Bel giggled as he released the younger male, stepping back to admire his boyfriend. It had been two years since they had last seen each other, and the blond swore Gokudera became more beautiful every time he saw him.

"The prince has been lonely~" Bel purred before he leant down to steal a kiss from the now-taller male. "The prince has to masturbate every day when we're not together."

"You dumbass, I told you it's okay if you need to have sex." Gokudera shoved at the older male in a half-hearted manner. "You don't have to masturbate all the time."

"But Hayato-kun is faithful to the prince, so the prince will be faithful in return~" Bel shot his lover a grin that sent a wave of want up Gokudera's spine. "The prince has something to admit though; he had been drinking one night and accidentally got a blowjob. He promises it didn't go any further, though."

"How do you 'accidentally' get a blowjob, Belphegor?" Gokudera smirked in amusement.

"Because the prince had been drinking and he was horny, and he doesn't quite remember how it happened. Ushishishi~"

Gokudera just laughed. "It's alright, Bel. You know I don't mind as long as it's me you return to - it's so long we're apart, after all."

Bel nodded, giggling. "Hayato-kun is the prince's boyfriend~ He is loved very much~"

"I love you, too, Bel."

The two storm guardians turned around as Tsuna addressed them, finding the Varia gathered with the Vongola trio. Xanxus looked about ready to shoot everyone, while Yamamoto spoke.

"Xanxus wants to know if Bel is staying at the hotel with the other Varia," the dark-haired man asked.

"Nope~" Bel hugged Gokudera again, nuzzling his face against silver hair. "The prince is going to stay with Hayato-kun and have lots and lots of sex."

"Bel-senpai, what's sex?"

All eyes turned to the monotonous Varia Mist, wide with shock - the new recruit was young of course, but he lived with the _Varia_! How could he _not _know what sex was?

"I don't even know if the kid's joking or not!" Squalo growled, storming away from the group - Bel often called him a prude for being uncomfortable when topics like this came up, but he did _not _want to know about the others' private lives. They were private for a _reason_.

"U-um, well, Fran-san..." Tsuna shifted uncomfortably, not sure what to say.

"Ushishishi~" Bel licked his lover's cheek, his mischievous smile crossing his features. "Hayato-kun, can we show him~?"

"Absolutely _not_!" Lussuria cried dramatically, leaning down to pull the Illusionist against his chest as if to shield his questionable innocence. "Frannie is too young to be tainted like that!"

"Wait." The boy - Fran - pushed away from Lussuria, looking up Bel with emotionless eyes. "Is sex what you asked me to do to you with my mouth when you were drunk?"

Gokudera burst into laughter at these words while Tsuna and Yamamoto shared uncomfortable looks, no idea how old that kid was - and if he was even _legal_.

"How could you?!" Lussuria, as always, caused a scene, while Fran just shrugged, deciding the reactions to his question had confirmed it - now all that was left on the matter was research.

"Does he spit or swallow?" Gokudera asked once he stopped laughing.

"Mmm..." Bel tilted his head to the side. "...The prince doesn't remember. He was pretty drunk."

"Do you want me to _refresh _your memory when we get back to my apartment?" Gokudera lowered his hand, grabbing Bel's rear suggestively.

Bel giggled as he nodded enthusiastically, feeling his pants tighten. "Hayato-kun never sucks the prince off~! He's so excited~!"

"Shut the fuck up, trash!" Xanxus snapped, having to already deal with his subordinate thinking he could get away with masturbating wherever he wanted to at Headquarters - especially that one time when everyone was eating dinner together and the blond just spontaneously started stroking himself. "No one wants to hear you!"

Bel ignored his boss, his excitement too high to be contained. "Ooh, can the prince have a turn at being on top, too? He's never been on top before~"

Gokudera nodded, smirking, as he and Bel started walking in order to follow their group of the airport and to the limo Tsuna had brought to pick everyone up.

"Well, you _are _a pain in the ass, Belphegor. You're lucky I love you."

"The prince loves himself, too, Hayato-kun~"

"Tsch... Idiot." As they walked through the airport together, close enough for their bodies to brush against each other, Bel snaked his hand down into Gokudera's. The younger male accepted readily, squeezing Bel's hand before he claimed the blond's lips for his own.

If there was one thing Gokudera had learnt, it was that, long ago, he had opened his heart for just one other person - and that cuddly moron was the one now ranting in a loud voice about the things he thought about when he had just his hand for company. Needless to say, the majority of people around them quickly scattered after hearing about Bel's... _graphic _explanations.

**Mmwhaaa****... I love this ****fic****. It's definitely one of my favorite ones in this fandom so far, considering it's not even my ****OTP****. I don't know. I might write some one-shot side-****fics****to this as it was so fun to write. I don't usually even write ****Bel****as a cuddly person, but it just seems so perfect with ****Hayato****-****kun****. ****Mmwhaa****... Now I'm just rambling. I hope you all enjoyed, and the epilogue was to your liking. **

**Oh, and regarding the implied B****26****, ****Fran's****old enough to be doing that with ****Bel****- he just doesn't... have many **_**needs, **_**hence why he obviously didn't get ****_the talk_**** (or did, but it's Fran we're talking about here.)**__


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